The Meridell Seven
by Lord Iceberg
Summary: Deep in the forests of Meridell, the plans of a criminal organization known as the Meridell Six are nearing completion. What they didn't count on was a child being foisted upon them, and spoiling everything.


_Disclaimer: I do not own or any of the content on it, which includes Neopet species and Neopian locations featured in this story._

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Chapter I

Kit peeked nervously around a tree branch, grumbling to himself. His Jetsam feet felt uncomfortably soft and sticky on a bed of leaves and broken twigs. He felt like a little child on a roller coaster ride, terribly nervous when he knew there was really nothing to be nervous about. Feeling more than a little stupid, he opened his mouth as wide as possible, then sang out into the empty forest.

"Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water!"

He took a tentative step forward, checked the ground around him for traps, and continued singing. "Jack fell down and broke his crown,"

A few more steps. Kit knew he shouldn't be scared. He had done this many times before. And there was nothing to be afraid of. But still, he hated it. The light of the Meridell sun streamed down through the treetops, and Kit spat on the ground in disgust before continuing with his song.

" . . . And Jill came tumbling after."

His mouth ran dry as he tried to remember the next verse. "Um . . . ah . . ." He rounded a bend, and saw the cave ahead, breaking into a run.

"Went to bed, and patched his head, with vinegar and brown – OOF!"

Kit felt the ground rush to meet him as a pair of leathery hands seized his legs. Next thing he knew, he was swinging sickeningly in the grasp of whatever had captured him.

"Well now, young Kit," sneered a sinister voice. "You missed two bars."

Kit flung out his arms to try to grab the tree next to him, but his attacker flicked his hand away lazily, taking a few more steps in the other direction.

"Wouldn't want you escaping, would we now?"

Kit sighed and folded his arms. "I know it's you, Pirrus" he pouted. "Put me down or I'll get Teminara to wring your neck."

"Oh, come now, you couldn't convince Teminara of anything," Pirrus laughed. "And besides, we both know she likes me in a big way."

"Just put me down!"

"OK, OK, Kit, I'll put you down. But you really should learn your nursery rhymes."

Pirrus released his grip on the Kit, who straightened up almost instantly. Pirrus was a tall, well built red Scorchio, more often than not with a wry smile on his face. "Go right ahead," he grinned, giving Kit a nudge in the direction of the cave. "Blaque's almost done with the plans."

"About time too," muttered Kit, grumpily, walking forward into the welcome safety of his hideout.

The cave was quite cool, and the floors had been polished smooth. Small piles of gold lay on the floor in various places, and a few tunnels and rooms had been hollowed out.

"You are late," cam a cold voice from the left. Kit turned to see Metrinoe, a large, green Skeith, curled on the floor near him, breathing deeply as if he was relaxed.

"It couldn't be helped,' grumbled Kit, kicking at some loose pebbles and sinking to the floor. "We need to find a new way to give Pirrus the all-clear other than nursery rhymes!"

"Nursery rhymes are fine, as long as you know them," replied Metrinoe, simply.

"And if you don't?" retorted Kit, irritably.

"Then you should spend more time learning them and less time complaining!" came a voice from the other side of the room. Teminara, a red Kougra with deep, vibrant stripes, was sharpening her claws on the stone. "It's your own lookout, Kit."

"Don't you have some poor, defenceless petpet to attack?" Kit snorted.

"I don't do poor, defenceless petpets. Not challenging enough."

Metrinoe snorted in disgust. It was common knowledge that he and Teminara hated each other. Absolute opposites, they were, the fast moving, co-ordinated, warrior Kougra and the slow, verbally skilled, cool Skeith.

"You two the only ones here?" Kit broke the hostile silence.

"Oh, no. Blaque's here, as usual," Metrinoe replied.

"Blaque sleeps here, as usual," Teminara echoed. "And Pirrus."

"Yes, I saw Pirrus," Kit grunted.

"Good morning, Kit," came a crisp, sharp voice from one of the tunnels, and the three companions all turned. Blaque was emerging from the next room, a piece of parchment skewered in his talons. He was an Eyrie, but not an ordinary Eyrie. Painted with a Darigan paintbrush, his claws were grey, his fur a deep shade of purple, and his eyes blood red. His beak was clicking thoughtfully as he strode into the room.

"Morning, Sir," Metrinoe replied almost instantly, before Teminara and Kit mumbled something of agreement.

There was a noise from outside, and the voice of Pirrus could be heard talking to a high-pitched Mynci. "No, the Shape Shifter is in the other direction entirely. And Brightvale isn't this way either. There's nothing by this point except for more forest."

"Can I explore it, then?" squeaked the Mynci, excitedly.

"No, sorry. Private property. No trespassers allowed. Be on your way, now."

Blaque waited for the lone Mynci's footsteps to fade into the distance, before calling, "Come in now, Pirrus, we'll start the meeting."

"In a minute!" called the Scorchio, before busying himself around a nearby tree.

"We're not waiting for Ick?" Teminara asked, inspecting her claws before settling into a more comfortable position.

"Ick is abroad in Meridell Castle," Blaque answered simply. "He will be back for the meeting tomorrow.

"And who's he disguised as this time?" Kit snorted.

"The maid, of course," Blaque smirked. "We've almost got our map of the castle's inner workings complete."

Metrinoe wriggled his paws lazily. "And you told him to test the thickness of the walls?"

"Naturally," replied Blaque. "And even if I hadn't, he would have figured it out. He's got more than a little common sense, that Grundo."

"You trust him too much," advised Kit, sceptically. "I mean, just because he's got no parents, and you adopted him and everything."

"Your point being, Kit?" Teminara raised her eyebrows.

"Quickly, Pirrus!" Blaque called to the cave entrance again, before turning back to watch the conversation at hand.

"Well, any time now, you'll be telling him the plan!" Kit exclaimed.

"And would it be such a terrible thing if I told him the plan?" Blaque interjected, coldly.

"Oh, let's not start this argument again!" Teminara whined.

"Not at all!" Blaque replied. "Indeed, we should get on with the meeting. Pirrus! We're starting without you!"

"I'll be along in two shakes!" came the resounding call from outside.

"Right," Teminara laughed. "Two shakes. Sure."

"I now declare this meeting of the Meridell Six open," announced Blaque. "Metrinoe, you start the reports."

Metrinoe straightened up importantly. "I contacted the bricklayer and managed to persuade him to tell me what kind of stone they used for the Meridell Castle. It's all written down on a piece of paper I have. Quite thick, but not the thickest there is. We'd need quite a bit of firepower to push through, though."

"My services were dismissed by a certain green Skeith earlier today," put in Teminara, accusingly. "So I have not done anything too interesting. I went searching for posters, though, and didn't find anything. We've still not been discovered. The Meridell Six, criminal organization in all of it's secrecy."

"Boring, boring," grumbled Kit. "Life is so boring. Nothing to do. Wish we were all rich. Give us something to do, spending all that."

Blaque clicked his beak knowingly. "We're working on it, young Jetsam."

"Are you ready to tell us your plan yet, Blaque?" Teminara quizzed.

There was a moment of silence as Blaque considered this. Then he spoke. "Actually, yes, Teminara, I will reveal the plan now. I don't pretend to have finished it, mind, I still need the information that Ick is collecting."

Metrinoe flicked his tail. "And you're sure Ick will be back tomorrow?"

"Quite sure," Blaque confirmed. "But at the moment, here's where we stand. The plan is to free the prisoners."

Stunned silence reigned for about ten seconds. Then . . .

"Free the prisoners!" Kit scoffed. "What good is that going to do?"

"Do you dare question Blaque's view on the situation?" Metrinoe growled, flaring his nostrils.

"Absolutely I question it!" Kit retorted.

"If you will allow me to explain," Blaque interjected, calmly. "Teminara gathered certain . . . shall we say, information, the other day. When she tried to incapacitate some of the castle guards."

"Tried," emphasised the Kougra. "Tried and failed miserably."

"Precisely," Blaque nodded. "So we have established that it would be pointless to try to take the castle by force, or even by siege. Or even to enter one of the side entrances, which are less guarded. And for all our stealth, there is no way that we could sneak in without planning for about six more months.

"So I am proposing that the best way to gain access to the inner chambers is a distraction, to draw the attention of the royal guard away from the castle. If we were to free the prisoners from the dungeons, a great surge in the guard would occur, because priority would shift to the recapture of the criminals, leaving us free to enter the castle."

" . . . Brilliant!" Metrinoe breathed, astounded. "And once inside?"

"Once inside," Blaque continued, "we make our way towards the throne room, and trap the king."

"And take his gold!" Kit cackled, rubbing his slimy hands together greedily.

"And take his gold, yes," Blaque confirmed.

"Did we actually discuss taking anything other than his gold?" Metrinoe inquired, his eyes fixed on the cave wall in thought.

"We did," replied Blaque. "And our discussion was inconclusive. Pirrus was reluctant to negotiate control over Meridell."

"Pirrus would be." Metrinoe grunted.

"What about land?" Teminara suggested. "We could always negotiate to have some of his land."

Blaque shook his head. "There would not be much point in taking land. For where is the value in land if you do not use it, and if we used it, everybody would know where we are, and we would have to find a different base to move onto our other goals"

"Our other goals," Teminara echoed, nodding. "You kept the list?"

"Indeed I did," Blaque confirmed, "but first we must conquer this one. Do not forget the reasons that we banded together in the first place. To exercise intelligence and skill where it has not been exercised before."

"To manipulate Neopia in ways not legally possible," grinned Metrinoe.

"To have the opportunity to fight for a purpose when there is no war," Teminara put in.

"To steal and get rich!" Kit squealed.

"To escape from the obnoxious hand of the law!" came a yell from outside.

"Are you _ever_ coming in, Pirrus?" Metrinoe snapped in the direction of the cave entrance.

"Almost done!" came the reply. "I'll be two shakes, honestly!"

Blaque clicked his beak impatiently. "Yes, I seem to recall you saying that last time we called you."

"I'll just be one more minute!"

"What is he doing out there?" muttered Teminara.

"Fixing traps, I suppose," Blaque answered. "After all, he is our cave guard."

Kit rolled his eyes. "I think we're safe now. He's been out there for _ages._"

"Who has?"

Everyone in the room gave a slight jump to hear a high pitched, young voice interjecting into their conversation. Teminara began glancing around wildly. Metrinoe went rigid.

"Who's there?" growled Blaque, his voice echoing creepily.

"I am!" responded the voice again, and Blaque turned to see a young Korbat with green wings, hovering near the roof. The Korbat smiled in a friendly manner, then swooped down to rest on the ground. "I'm Brenn!" he announced. "Pleased to meet you!"

Stunned silence reigned for a long minute. This had obviously never happened before. An intruder in the cave was unheard of. How much of the conversation had he heard?

It was Teminara who broke the uneasy quiet. "Pleased to meet you too, Brenn."

"Yes! So you do talk!" Brenn babbled enthusiastically. "I thought I heard you talking before, but I didn't hear much! Who's Pirrus? What are all of your names?" Teminara opened her mouth to respond, and Metrinoe readied a paw to stop her, but there was no need, as the young Korbat simply blundered on without leaving space for anybody else to speak.

"This is a cool cave, isn't it? Is this your secret hideout? Do you have secret codes? Do you have secret treasure that you keep hidden because bloodthirsty pirates are after you? And if they caught you they'd take you back to Krawk Island an make you walk the plank? And, and-"

"Well, Blaque, it's all secure!" proclaimed Pirrus confidently, striding into the cave. "There's not a single intruder who's going to get in here!"

"Indeed," Metrinoe replied, coldly. "We can see that all your advanced security has admitted only the most experienced professionals."

Pirrus made a puzzled face. "What?"

"Wow, a _Scorchio_!" Brenn exploded! "Can you breathe fire? Can you fly and breathe fire at the same time? Can you make smoke come out of your nose and make smoke rings and-"

"What?" Pirrus repeated, dumbly. "What's a kid doing in here?"

"We were hoping _you_ could tell _us_, dear friend," Blaque answered, threateningly.

Pirrus bit his lip and flapped his wings nervously. "Well, um . . . it's possible he slipped past me, isn't it?"

Blaque glared at him, his red eyes burning into Pirrus' skin. "Don't you _ever_ let this happen again."

"Yes, Blaque."

"EVER."

"Yes, Blaque."

"Cool!" Brenn chimed in. "Are you the leader? Do you have special powers? Can you hypnotise people with your eyes?"

Blaque took a deep breath, and let it out slowly to calm himself. "Pirrus," he began, simply. "This is Brenn. Brenn, this is Pirrus."

Brenn waved cheerfully. "Hi!"

Pirrus fidgeted uncomfortably for a second, trying to think of something to say. He turned to Blaque. "Maybe if you tell him-"

"He's your fault," interrupted Blaque, "You deal with him."

Pirrus nodded solemnly, then flapped his wings, and hovered over to where Brenn sat. He swallowed nervously, for his mouth was dry, and then began to speak. "Well, now Brenn. You've got past my security, that was very good . . . very good effort indeed . . ."

"Does that mean I can join?" Brenn asked, his expression radiating excitement.

Pirrus raised his eyebrows. "Well . . ." He trailed off, and turned instinctively to Blaque, who flashed him a warning look.

"Well, just hang on, Brenn," Pirrus finished, turning back to the young Korbat. "You don't even know what we do yet."

"Oh." Brenn's face fell, as though he had just been told that his birthday had been cancelled, and the information was still sinking in. "Well . . . what do you do?"

"Well, I guess we . . . we . . ." Pirrus trailed off, rooting around for a lie, a good lie, that would keep this child off their backs. He shifted his feet into a stronger position, straightened up, and gave a solemn, brave look. "We are the Meridell Six. Devoted to the betterment and onward change of Meridell, Brightvale, and all areas of Neopia far beyond."

"Wow!" breathed Brenn, stunned.

Pirrus looked searchingly at Blaque, but the Eyrie only motioned for him to continue. "We . . . make plans in our cave, to decide which ways would best benefit Meridell," Pirrus continued. "Right now, we're planning to visit the king and . . . and show him our new idea for . . . er . . . prison security. So that no prisoners will escape." He nodded. "At all. Ever."

"Cool!" exclaimed Brenn, after Pirrus' voice had trailed off into silence. "So, can I join?"

Pirrus fidgeted uncomfortably. He would have been a whole lot happier if Brenn had never found the cave of the Meridell Six in the first place. Things would be much less complicated. He opened his mouth, but then closed it again when he realised that he had nothing to say.

"Please!" Brenn begged. "I'll be really good, and I won't cause any trouble, and you don't even have to tell me anything, and I'm always visiting the palace, and I can do lots of jobs, and-"

Pirrus furrowed his brow. He didn't dare look at Blaque, fearful of the expression he might see. Sandwiched between two sides of the same command, he heaved a sigh. "Sure. OK, Brenn, I guess you can join."

"YES!" Brenn punched the air in excitement. Metrinoe sat, eyes wide. Teminara pulled a puzzled face, and settled down by the cave wall again.

"So!" continued Pirrus. "From this day forward, we are no longer the Meridell Six. We are now, officially, the Meridell Seven!" He smiled weakly, and for some reason, it seemed to make him happy to see Brenn smiling back.

Neither of them even shot a glance at Blaque, who was perched in the corner of the cave, his eyes narrowed in a livid glare.


End file.
